Published: 2026-08-14
On 13 August 2026, XRG, the international energy investment company of Abu Dhabi's ADNOC, announced its entry into Venezuela. The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela awarded the offshore Loran gas licence, which holds over 4 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of proven natural gas resources, to a partnership in which XRG, bp and UCC hold equal interests, with the stake transferred from state-owned PDVSA Gas. Loran is part of the cross-border Loran-Manatee accumulation on the maritime boundary between Venezuela and Trinidad and Tobago, and its gas is expected to flow to the established LNG facilities of Trinidad, giving Abu Dhabi capital a direct route into Atlantic Basin gas exports without building new export infrastructure.
What happened: the deal in detail
XRG was created by ADNOC as its dedicated international investment platform for gas, chemicals and low-carbon energy, and it has been moving quickly. The Loran transaction is its first step into Venezuela and, more broadly, into the Latin American offshore gas play at scale. Under the award announced on 13 August 2026, three partners, XRG, bp and UCC, will each hold an equal interest in the licence, with industry reports indicating that bp will act as operator. The interest itself was transferred from PDVSA Gas, Venezuela's state gas company.
The partners emphasise that the transaction remains subject to definitive licence and development arrangements, governmental and regulatory approvals, and all relevant international sanctions and compliance requirements. That caveat matters: Venezuela remains a heavily sanctioned jurisdiction, and the structure of the deal, with gas monetised through Trinidad and Tobago rather than through new Venezuelan export capacity, is designed to work within that reality. XRG's participation in a second phase of Loran development is subject to the same conditions.
Mohamed Al Aryani, President of International Gas at XRG, framed the move plainly: "Venezuela holds significant gas resources and has the potential to play a greater role in meeting regional and international energy demand."
Loran-Manatee: one gas accumulation, two countries
The geology behind the headline is unusual. Loran-Manatee is a single natural gas accumulation that straddles the maritime border between Venezuela and Trinidad and Tobago. In 2019 the two countries agreed that each would develop its own portion independently, which unlocked progress after years of stalled cross-border talks.
| Segment | Jurisdiction | Estimated resources |
|---|---|---|
| Loran | Venezuela | ~7.3 Tcf (over 4 Tcf proven within the licence) |
| Manatee | Trinidad and Tobago | ~2.7 Tcf |
| Loran-Manatee total | Cross-border | ~10 Tcf |
Figures are as reported by Gulf News on 13 August 2026; the official announcement confirms over 4 Tcf of proven gas resources within the Loran licence itself. For comparison, 4 Tcf is enough gas to supply a mid-sized LNG train for well over a decade, which is why a licence of this size draws supermajors and sovereign-backed investors alike.
Why Trinidad's LNG plants are the key to the deal
Gas in the ground is only half of the equation; the other half is a route to market. Loran's advantage is proximity to Trinidad and Tobago's long-established LNG export complex, which has spare processing capacity as the country's own mature fields decline. Connecting Loran gas to existing liquefaction plants eliminates the need to build a new export system from scratch, dramatically reducing capital cost and time to first revenue.
This is the same logic that has driven bp's parallel work on Manatee, the Trinidad side of the accumulation. For XRG, the structure delivers something rare: exposure to a world-class untapped gas resource together with immediate access to functioning LNG infrastructure and established Atlantic Basin trade routes to buyers in Europe and the Americas.
XRG's global portfolio: seven countries and counting
Venezuela is the latest addition to a portfolio that XRG has assembled at remarkable speed. The company's international gas interests now span the United States, Argentina, Egypt, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Mozambique and now Venezuela, alongside its chemicals and low-carbon ambitions. The geographic spread is deliberate: positions on both sides of the Atlantic, in the Mediterranean and Caspian, and in East Africa give Abu Dhabi optionality across every major LNG demand centre.
The Loran deal also confirms a pattern in how Abu Dhabi deploys capital abroad: partner with a supermajor that brings operating capability, take a meaningful but balanced equity share, and prioritise assets that can monetise through existing infrastructure. It is a capital-efficient model that turns ADNOC's balance sheet into global reach without the execution risk of solo frontier development.
What the deal says about the UAE's investment strategy
For businesses watching the UAE, the significance goes beyond one gas field. Abu Dhabi is systematically converting hydrocarbon revenue into a diversified international energy platform, and that expansion generates demand at home: engineering and project services, legal and compliance work, trading desks, logistics and finance all cluster around ADNOC's ecosystem in Abu Dhabi and Dubai. The scale of that ecosystem was visible earlier this month when ADNOC Logistics and Services posted record quarterly results on the back of the group's expanding global footprint.
Energy-adjacent entrepreneurs, from consultancies and inspection firms to shipping agents and software providers, consistently find that a UAE legal presence puts them closer to these procurement chains. Free zone and mainland structures both work; what matters is matching the licence to the activity and having a bank account that can handle international counterparties.
Key facts at a glance
- Date announced: 13 August 2026.
- Asset: offshore Loran gas licence, Venezuela, over 4 Tcf of proven gas resources.
- Partners: XRG (ADNOC), bp and UCC, equal interests; stake transferred from PDVSA Gas.
- Wider accumulation: Loran-Manatee, ~10 Tcf across the Venezuela and Trinidad and Tobago maritime boundary.
- Route to market: existing LNG facilities in Trinidad and Tobago, no new export system required.
- Conditions: definitive agreements, regulatory approvals and full compliance with international sanctions.
- XRG footprint after the deal: United States, Argentina, Egypt, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Mozambique and Venezuela.
How Atlant Capital can help
Atlant Capital helps founders and investors plug into the UAE economy that stands behind stories like this one. We advise on company setup in the UAE, from choosing between free zone and mainland licences to structuring for energy services, trading and consulting activities, and we support corporate bank account opening with banks that understand international business. If your company works with the energy sector or its supply chain, we can help you establish the UAE presence that gets you closer to the region's flagship projects.
Outlook
Loran will not deliver gas overnight: definitive agreements, approvals and development drilling all lie ahead. But the direction is unmistakable. Abu Dhabi's international energy arm has moved from announcement to acquisition across seven countries in barely two years, and the Atlantic Basin is now firmly inside its map. For the UAE, each such deal deepens the country's role as a global energy capital; for businesses in and around the Emirates, it is another signal that the ecosystem they are joining is still expanding.
FAQ
What is XRG and who owns it?
XRG is the international energy investment company of ADNOC, the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company. It was set up to invest globally in natural gas, chemicals and low-carbon energy, and its gas portfolio now covers the United States, Argentina, Egypt, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Mozambique and, since 13 August 2026, Venezuela.
What exactly did XRG acquire in Venezuela?
XRG received an equal interest, alongside bp and UCC, in the offshore Loran gas licence awarded by Venezuela, with the stake transferred from state-owned PDVSA Gas. The licence contains over 4 trillion cubic feet of proven natural gas resources and forms part of the cross-border Loran-Manatee accumulation shared with Trinidad and Tobago.
How will Loran gas reach international markets?
Through Trinidad and Tobago. The Loran field lies next to the maritime border, and its gas is expected to be processed at Trinidad's existing LNG facilities, which removes the need to build new export infrastructure and shortens the path to first revenue.
Is the deal affected by sanctions on Venezuela?
The partners state that the transaction is subject to definitive licence and development arrangements, governmental and regulatory approvals, and all relevant international sanctions and compliance requirements. Monetising the gas through Trinidad and Tobago rather than through new Venezuelan export capacity is part of how the project is structured around those constraints.
